2002 Topper Awards

The primary purpose of the Tournament of Plays is to encourage individual and group excellence in US Forces community theatre programs throughout Europe. The goal is to promote, instruct, and recognize outstanding achievements in areas of performance and technical theatre. A team of professional judges is travelling Europe from tip to tail, watching performances of every plays and musical entered in the competition.

Following each show, the cast, crew, and staff will be given a thirty-minute verbal critique, conducted in the theatre facility. The judges will share their impressions of the productions, and will offer praise together with constructive recommendations for enhancing future efforts. Awards will be decided upon in a variety of technical and performance categories, including Best Drama, Comedy, and Musical; Best Actress and Actor; Set, Sound and Lighting Designs, etc. The official judging period for this Tournament of Plays is from the end of February to the beginning of April.

This year, AT&T and Volvo are official sponsors of the 2002 Tournament of Plays.

Here are the Awards Ceremony details.

Here is the 2002 nominations and winners page

Here is info on the theater workshops that were held.

This year's judges:

Lindsay Fussell - Choreographer/Director/Teacher, Chattanooga Theatre Center

Dan LaMorte - NYC-based teacher/director, Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre

Stephen Hancock - Assistant Professor, University of Memphis, playwright, director, various positions with The Manhattan Theatre Club, Off-Broadway Theatre.

James Sohre - the Entertainment Director for Headquarters, United States Army, Europe, overseeing training and development of community music and theatre programs at US Army installations throughout Europe, joins the judging group for adjuticating musicals.

Entries

Ansbach Terrace Playhouse
"Man of La Mancha"

Bamberg Stable Theatre:
"Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat"

Darmstadt Performing Arts Center:
"Footloose"

Garmisch Players:
"Sylvia"

Giessen Keller Theatre:
"Are You Sure?"

Hanau Five Pfennig Dinner Theatre:
"The 3 Musketeers" "Baby" "Greater Tuna"

Heidelberg Roadside Theater:
"Proposals" "Art"

Hohenfels Box Seat Theatre:
"The Gin Game"

Kaiserslautern Music and Theatre:
"Shirley Valentine"

Mannheim Off Main Street Theatre:
"Confusions" "Blood Ties"

Ramstein Razz-Ma-Tazz Theatre:
"Princess and the Pea"

SHAPE Entertainment Center:
"12 Angry Jurors" "Intimate Exchanges" "The Wizard of Oz"

Spangdahlem Act Eifel:
"Love, Sex, and the IRS"

Stuttgart Theatre Center:
"The Secret Garden"

Vicenza Soldiers Theatre:
"The Chicago Gypsies"

Vilseck Bavarian Arts Guild:
"Godspell"

Wiesbaden Amelia Earhart Theatre:
"Prom Queens Unchained" "Bullshot Crummond"

The "Topper" statue is so named from the acronym T.O.P. (Tournament of Plays)